Battery master switch



Sept- 19, 195o E. K. IRVINE 2,523,215

BATTERY MASTER SWITCH Filed May 10, 1948 2 Sheets-Sheet l MM ma Sept.19, 1950 E. K. IRVINE 2,523,215

BATTERY MASTER SWITCH Filed May 1G, 1948 2 Shets-Sheet 2 we MIM maPatented Sept. 19, 1950 yUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 4 Claims.

This invention relates to a battery master switch vdesigned to be usedin connection with the ignition and lighting system .or circuit of anautomobile or the like to prevent drain on the battery while the car isparked or standing Astill and to prevent a short from .starting a lire,as well as to prevent charging ofthe battery and over-charging thereofon long trips by disconnecting -or throwing out the generator, .inaddition to preventing discharge and waste of the battery by making itimpossible for children to blow the horn, turn on the lights or use thestarter.

Another object of the invention is to provide a switch interposed in anelectrical circuit of the automobile and operated from the dash orinstrument board or panel so that all current 'from the battery may becut olf or the generator rendered inoperative while being towed,coasting down hill with the battery or ignition switch off or thebattery from being discharged from any cause while being parked orstanding or while a mechanic is working on the car or electrical systemthereof, and also to prevent drain on the battery from unauthorizedattempts such as of children to operate the horn, 'turn on the lights orusing the starter.

With the above and other objects in View, my invention consists in thearrangement, combination and details of construction disclosed in thedrawings and specification, and then more `par-ticularly pointed out 1inthe appended claims.

In the drawings, Y

Figure l is an elevation of a battery master switch constructed `4inaccordance with my invent'ion,

Figure 2 is a view similar to Figure 1 with the switch cover removed,

Figures 3 and 4 are vertical and longitudinal sectional views taken onthe lines 3--3 and 4-4 respectively of Figure 2; and

Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view of the wiring employing the switch.

Referring to the drawings, I designates the battery master switch whichis mounted in a housing I I which may take the form of an insulation orber plate or casing on which a cover I2 is detachably mounted in anysuitable manner. Attafhed to the back or base of a housing which may beconstituted by 'the plate II, is a metallic plate I3 as by means ofsuitable fastenings such as screws I 4 and disposed between orintermediately of the ends of `the base, back plate or housing Il. Theplate I3 may be provided with a central reduced bottom flange I5 and has'mounted upon one or both faces thereof a plurality, preferably tworollers I 6, the pivots or shafts I1 of which are carried by the plateI3. The rollers I6 bear upon a fiat strip or track I8 secured to a'movable contact or switch plunger I9 so as to move therewithlongitudinally of the yhousing and having interposedtherebetween,compression springs 20. The springs 20 are disposed betweenthe top of the plunger `I 9 and the strip or track I8 so as to normally'press the latter against the rollers which are preferably of metal suchas steel, copper bronze I'or other good electrical conductor so that thecurrent will not only be transferred but the plunger will slide easier.The plunger may be of tubular formation, such as rectangular or yothercross section with flat top and bottom walls, and one end is cutout atthe bottom as indicated at 2 I, namely the inner end so as to form aninverted U or channel-shaped formation in cross section at this end inwhich is inserted and held an insulation kor ber block 22 of a crosssection corresponding to that of the plunger at its interior dimension.The plunger may also be reinforced internally between the top and bottomflat walls thereof as indicated at 23 as by suitable strips connected atsuitable intervals to insure better conduction or vtransference ofelectrical current.

At the bottom, the bottom wall of the plunger engages frictionally withka plate 24 secured by suitable fastening such as screws 25 to the baseII in spaced parallel relation beneath the plate I3 and `provided with alateral right angular flange 26 at the top on which the plunger slides,the springs 20 insuring proper frictional contact therewith under the`spring tension thus provided.

Also secured to the base II against the same or innerface thereof towhich the plate I3 is secured, is an insulated block or contact plate21, the securing means such as screws 28 being insulated from the blockor plate 21 as indicated at 29. A post 30 extends from the plate 21 forconnection :of the usual ground wire cable 3| of the battery as commonlyemployed in connection with the ignition and lighting systems ofautomobiles and is arranged to extend through the cover I2 which has anopening 32 for this purpose. The switch is preferably mounted on theframe of the automobile or motor as near as possible to the battery andthe plungerand contact plates preferably constructed of steel or brass,except for the insulation or fiber parts as described. The front end ofthe plunger opposite the block or plug 22 has connection with a push andpull or Bowden wire cable 33 having one end 34 coiled around aninsulated sleeve or bushing 35 to insulate the same from a fastening orscrew 36 attaching one end of the cable to the plunger. The

opposite end of the cable extends through the instrument panel ordashboard 31 of the automobile, through a bracket plate 38 having asleeve 39 with a suitable bushing in which the flexible tube or housing48 of the cable is connected and provided with a projecting knob 4 I bywhich the cable may be manipulated, that is pushed in or pulled out. Theopposite end of the tube or housing 40 is anchored in a shield orbracket 42 suitably mounted or fixed at the front end of the switchhousing and formed therewith if desired. This bracket is shown as afrusto-conical or tapered member in which the tube or housing 40 isdisposed and held as by means of a clamping nut 43, so that the cablemay be shifted lengthwise therein to slide the plunger I9 in and out.

Extending from the plate I3 is a wire or cable 44 which is connected tothe frame to groundV same as at 45 in the electrical system of theautomobile shown diagrammatically in Figure of the drawings. In back ofthe plate 21, a spring contact switch 46 is mounted on the base IIwithin the housing I2 and comprises a bracket arm 41 of'substantiallyU-shaped form disposed with its legs horizontally and attached to thebase in any suitable manner as by means of extension plate i8 andfastening means or screws 49. The lower arm of the bracket 41 extendsrearwardly and has an upwardly bent end 50 on which is provided acontact 5I. This Contact is fixed and has an arm 52 extending intoengagement with a post 53 connected to the ground as indicated at 54.The other or upper arm of the bracket 41 adjustably mounts a pivotbearing 55 which is insulated from the bracket and has pivoted thereonat 56, a movable pivoted contact or lever 51 carrying a movable contact58 for engagement with the contact or point 5I. The upper arm of thepivoted contact or lever 51 is connected to a spring 59 having itsopposite end anchored to the base or an arm 88 projecting up from thebracket 41 to normally hold the contact point 58 in engagement with thevpoint 5I while the upper end of the lever arm is engaged by the innerend of the plunger I9 and is not sufficiently wide to straddle themetallic tubular part of the plunger but adapted to be engaged by theinserted ber or insulation block or plug 22. The battery 6I is connectedto the insulated Contact block or plate 21 at post 35 through cable 3Iand is connected to the reverse current relay or cutout indicated at 52by a conductor 65 extending from terminal E6 or the hot side of thebattery. The horn circuit 51, lighting circuit 68, starter circuit B9,having a starter motor M, and an ignition circuit are also connected bya common supply cable 1I to the hot terminal 65 as is conventionalpractice. All of these circuits are of conventional design and includesuitable switch means as at 12 and are individually grounded as at 13.The reverse current relay or cutout 62 is connected to the generator 63and the contact 5I is connected through post 53 to the generator side ofthe reverse current relay, the generator being indicated at 63 andgrounded to the frame of the automobile as indicated at 64.

Thus, by having the insulation block 22 in the inner end of the plungerI9 of such length and proportions to the movable contact formed byplunger I9, it may engage the contact plate 21 at its forward end and atthe same time engage the pivoted contact lever 51 so as to disengage thecontact point 58 from the contact point 5I by merely pushing on the knob4I so as to disconnect the generator from ground 54 at the switch illprovided. However, when the plunger is pulled to the right, about11k-inches in the device made in accordance with the invention, theblock 22 only, engages the contact plate 21 so as to cut off all currentfrom the battery and at the same time permit the contact point 58 toengage the contact point 5I under the urgence of the spring 59 so as toclose the switch at this point to the generator and thereby ground thegenerator to prevent burning out while the automobile is being towed orwhile coasting down hill with the batktery or ignition switch off. Bypulling the plunger inwardly 1/a-inch through the medium of the knob 4Iand cable 33, the block 22 will move out of engagement with the switchlever 51, permit switch 46 to close by engagement of points 5I and y58under biasing of spring 59, so that no charging or further charging ofthe battery will take place, especially on long trips or to preventover-charging, due to the shunting, shorting or grounding of thegenerator while maintaining the ignition circuit 10 from the batterythrough the plunger switch through plunger or movable contact I9 andcontacts 21 and I3. Normally when the knob 4I and plunger are pushedrearwardly or in, normal operation of the ignition system will takeplace as switch 46 is open by reason of contacts 5I and 58 beingseparated against the action or tension of spring 59 as seen in Figurel, and as the plunger is held in frictional engagement with both theplates 24 and 21, the contacts are kept clean by reason of the biasingor tension springs 20 so that good electrical connection is insured,while at the same time the anti-friction bearings or rollers I6 insureease of operation by reason of the plunger moving against said rollers.The metal cover over the switch protects the interior parts from foreignmatter such as water or grit and when the switch is pulled out to movethe insulated block 22 vover the Contact plate 21 insulated from theother parts as described, the device is useful in preventingunauthorized persons or children from blowing the horn, turning on thelights, or using the starter and thus wasting or discharging thebattery. On the other hand, by opening the switch by pulling the plungerso that the insulation block 22 is disposed over the contact plate 21all current from the battery is cut off and at the same time, thecontact points are engaged to close the vswitch to the generator so thatthe latter is grounded to prevent it from burning out while in gear andbeing towed or coasting down hill with the battery or ignition switchoff. When the car is parked or standing it will prevent the battery frombeing discharged for any cause such as a short in the circuit and willact as a protective measure for the benefit of a mechanic working on thecar or electrical system. On long trips, over-charging will be preventedby grounding the generator so that no further charging will take place,nor the battery burned out.

I do not mean to confine myself to the exact details of. constructionherein disclosed but claim all variations falling within the purview ofthe appended claims.

What I claim is:

l. In an electrical system for automobiles having a battery, and anignition circuit directly connected to said battery, a generatorgrounded to the frame of the automobile, and a reverse current relayinterposed in an electrical conductor between the battery and thegenerator, a normally closed switch connected to said conductor betweenthe reverse current relay and the generator and also grounded to theframe, a pair of stationary contacts, one connected to the battery, andthe other also grounded to the frame, a movable contact in the form ofaplunger engaging said stationary contacts and movable between the same,a section of insulation at the inner end of the plunger and adapted toengage said normally closed switch when the plunger is in position tobridge said stationary contacts, and thus to open said normally closedswitch, whereby the circuit through the generator and battery is closedto charge the battery, and whereby when the plunger is moved slightly inone direction, said normally closed switch is adapted to' close toconnect the generator directly to the frame, and in another positionsaid plunger is adapted when pulled out to dispose the insulationsection between said stationary contacts, to break the circuittherebetween from the battery to theignition circuit, and also todisengage said normally closed switch to cause the same to close andground the generator directly to the frame.

2. An electrical system for automobiles including a generator, a reversecurrent relay and a battery in series connection, and an ignitioncircuit directly connected to said battery, and a master battery switchcomprising a housing, a metallic plunger movable in the housing andprovided with an insulation block at one end of the plunger and exposedat one face thereof, a pair of stationary contacts between which saidplunger is movable, said plunger adapted to engage one of said contactsin one position, and to engage said block therewith in another positionindependently of the metallic part of the plunger, contact rollerscarried by the other one of said stationary contacts, said other one ofsaid stationary contacts being connected to ground, a spring pressed contact carried by the plunger and resiliently urged against said rollers,a switch interposed in an electrical conductor extending from saidsystem between said generator and said reverse current relay to groundand mounted in the housing at the end of the plunger provided with theinsulation block and having a stationary contact and a movable contactnormally engaged with the stationary contact, said movable contactpositioned to be engaged by the insulation block when the plunger is inposition to bridge the gap between the stationary contacts to open thesaid interposed switch by causing movement of the movable contact of thesaid interposed switch away from the stationary contact thereof, and inanother position said plunger being adapted to dispose said insulationblock between the first named stationary contacts whereby the ignitioncircuit is broken and the movable contact of the said interposed switchis normally engaged with the stationary contact thereof for groundingthe generator, and means for sliding said plunger.

3. In an automobile electrical system including a generator, a reversecurrent relay, a battery and an ignition circuit connected directly tosaid battery, a master battery switch comprising a first switchincluding a pair of iiXed spaced apart contacts interposed in saidsystem between said battery and ground, a plunger movable between saidxed contacts and having electrically con- Cri ducting and insulatingportions thereon, and a normally closed second switch interposed in anelectrical conductor extending from said system between said generatorand said relay to ground, said second switch including a movable contactcarrier positioned to be engaged by said plunger for opening said secondswitch, said plunger, in one position thereof, being adapted to closethe circuit through said fixed contacts by contact of said conductingportions therewith and to engage said movable contact carrier foropening said second switch, and in another position thereof, to breakthe circuit between said battery and ground and disengage said movablecontact carrier to close said second switch for grounding saidgenerator.

4. In an electrical system for automobiles, including a generator, areverse current relay, a battery and an ignition circuit connecteddirectly to said battery, spaced stationary contacts interposed betweensaid battery and ground, an elongated movable contact slidable betweenand engaging said stationary contacts, a length of insulation mounted onsaid movable contact and adapted in one position of the latter to engageone of said stationary contacts to break the circuit `between saidbattery and said ignition circuit, and a spring-pressed normally closedswitch having a xed and a rockable contact interposed in an electricalconductor leading from the system between said generator and saidreverse current relay to ground, said latter switch including a rockablecontact carrier positioned to be engaged by said length of insulation inanother position thereof for breaking the circuit from said generatorthrough said electrical conductor to ground, said elongated movablecontact in said latter position being adapted to close the circuitbetween said spaced stationary contacts.

EDWIN K. IRVINE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the iile ofthis patent:

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